'A taste of honey' written by Shelagh Delaney in 1959.
A Taste of Honey 'A taste of honey' was written by Shelagh Delaney in 1959. The play is set in a rough area in Manchester. It is an industrial city. Most of the play is set in a cheap, dull flat that needs demolishing. The flat seems as if it has been derelict for years. At that time people were very poor and scruffy and lived in a harsh surrounding. In the 50's there wasn't many black people, because they had just started to immigrate. This might have caused a shock in those days because a white person getting together with a black person just wouldn't have been acceptable to society. People were very racist and if two different coloured people were seen together as a couple they would have felt very uncomfortable. Divorces were very uncommon then and were frowned upon. Only 1 in 100 marriages would end up in a divorce, unlike 1 in 3 now. Also if you were living together with someone without being married you would be condemned by society. This could be because then the churches had greater influence on people as more people went to church. The flat that they lived in was an old ruin. "... You can afford something better than this old ruin..." There was no heating and it was freezing, "...God! It's freezing! ..." "... But there's a lovely view of the gas works..." Helen says this so we know that she's got a positive attitude or she's got a sense of humour. They had to
A Taste of Honey How does Shelagh Delaney present the changing factors of Jo's character?
How does Shelagh Delaney present the changing factors of Jo's character? In this essay I am going to be looking at the play a taste of honey and looking at the factors of Jo's character. This play was written in 1956 the writer Shelagh Delaney was only a teenager when she wrote this play Helen and Jo are mother and daughter and they live in tatty flats. Helen meets a man named peter and they get married. Helen leaves goes to live with peter. Jo meets a boy who is in the navy. They spend Christmas together Jo gets pregnant and the boy leaves. Jo meets another boy called Geof and they set up home together. Geof is bisexual. Helens marriage breaks up because peter goes off with a younger woman. Helen comes back to and moves back in and get rid of Geof and he leaves and then it is mother and daughter again In the play Jo is the main character as she is always present in the play. In the play Jo meets Jimmy who is the father of her child and she also meets Geof who is bisexual and they have a relationship, Jo also has relationships with her mother Helen. Jo and Helen doesn't get on well with each other and Helen leaves Jo at home when she goes out in the play a lot happens too Jo her mother leaves she gets pregnant, she lives with a bisexual and her mother returns Thought out the play Jo's character changes at the start Jo is critical as she says to her mother "your
Book Review of Matilda.
Book Review - Matilda Matilda is a five year old girl who reads books by Dickens and can solve long sums in her head. But is put down by her crooked father sales man and is ignored by her bingo addicted mother. Matilda decides that each time she is treated badly by her parents and is made miserable by them she will get revenge in some way. She plays pranks on her parents which are devastating for them but make her feel much better. The little girl's pranks include placing superglue around the rim of her father's hat and mixing her mother's blond hair dye with her father's hair tonic to make him look like a fool. It doesn't end there; when Matilda goes to school she encounters Miss.Trunchbull the wicked principal. The Trunchbull is very strict with her pupils and gives severe punishments some of which include throwing a boy out of the window for eating in class and gripping a girl by her pig tails and dashing her 400 m into the school allotments. At school Matilda becomes very close to her teacher Miss. Honey. Miss. Honey is surprised to see how clever she is for her age group. One day the Trunchbull comes to inspect Miss.Honey's class, when Matilda becomes very angry after being accused of placing a newt in the Trunchbull's jug of water. Matilda keeps looking at the glass of water and says to herself tip tip then suddenly the glass tips over. Matilda discovers
How might an audience react to Act One Scene Two in A Taste of Honey? What social comments are being made here?
Katherine Allen 0D How might an audience react to Act One Scene Two in A Taste of Honey? What social comments are being made here? Back in the late 1950s, audiences who would go to see plays such as A Taste of Honey would see things a lot differently and react in a different way to audiences seeing the play today. In general, people were shocked much more easily at the time when Shelagh Delaney wrote the play. Back then, people of different races would not have been accepted into the white community, homosexual acts were illegal, and hardly anybody lived in poor conditions, as did Helen and Jo. Some members of the audience may even have been offended that the area in which they lived was being portrayed as having people such as Helen and Jo living in it. Issues raised in the play would have been seen as much larger problems in the late 1950s, than they would now. Compared with the first scene of the play, Act One Scene Two is very different. In Act One Scene One, there is mainly dialogue between Helen and Jo. The conversation is sharp and fast, as both women are equally exasperated with each other. Moving into Scene Two the pace slows considerably, due to the tension and uncertainty between Jo and her boyfriend. After the first scene, Act One Scene Two moves the play along quickly, introducing a new character, Jimmie, who is heavily involved in the occurrences of the
Explore the mother-daughter relationship in
Explore the mother-daughter relationship in "A Taste of Honey" The play "A taste of Honey" is set up in England in the 1950s. Helen is a single mother in a time it was very hard to rise up a child due to the criticisms of society for being unmarried. There were and still are social expectations on how should a good mother be, caring, comprehensive, loving etc which Helen does not live up to them. The relation between Jo and Helen all over the book is a destructive and negative relationship "Drink, drink, drink you make me sick" with some moments of affection " I'll pay, you're not stupid. You'll soon learn...you're wasting yourself". Helen drinks, she is poor, living off of men putting them before Jo, she is sarcastic and cold when it comes to Jo "I can't bear to be parted from you" and inappropriately shares her sex-life with her daughter but worse of all, she regrets that she has had a child; many of these attitudes make Jo fell disgusted towards her mother, making her even more insecure. Jo only being a child is scared and vulnerable, not having a mother rollmodle or any advice from her mother "It's your life, ruin it your own way", Jo without noticing she is following some of her mother's patterns making the some of the same mistakes, and following certain life styles, which are the same things that made her feel disgusted of her mother. Jo fells jealous of the
'A Taste of Honey' by Shelagh Delaney examines the relationship between a mother and her daughter. What are the dynamics of this relationship, and how does it develop? What methods might a director use to represent this relationship on stage?
Amy Collins 'A Taste of Honey' examines the relationship between a mother and her daughter. What are the dynamics of this relationship, and how does it develop? What methods might a director use to represent this relationship on stage? You should look at: - - The relationship at different points during the play - Reasons for any changes - Methods of representing the relationship on stage, such as body language, tone of voice and appearance. 'A Taste Of Honey' is a twentieth century play set in the 1950s. It is known as a "kitchen-sink" drama and was written by Shelagh Delaney and was first performed in May 1958. A "kitchen-sink" drama originated in the literature in the 1950s and 1960s. Its aim is to create a true picture of the hard life and troubles of the working class life. The play explores many ideas's that were new for that time period. The play is based on a mother (Helen) her and 15 year old daughter (Jo), Jo has no father because he and Helen had had an affair and he was not interested in a long-term relationship with her. Helen is a prostitute and Jo is about to leave school. Jo falls in love and gets engaged to a young sailor who then leaves her. Helen then gets married and moves in with her husband Peter leaving Jo to fend for herself. Jo finds a friend in a gay man called Jeff who moves in with her and helps her to look after herself. Jo then finds out
Shelagh Delaney's 'A Taste of Honey' .
C20 DRAMA COURSEWORK 'A TASTE OF HONEY' By Shelagh Delaney 'A Taste of Honey' was first produced in 1958 and shocked audiences. What aspects of the play do you think would have been controversial at the time? Compare the play with the more recent TV version, focusing on what you find shocking about its impact today. How does the social context in which a play is seen affect audience reaction? 'A Taste of Honey' was first produced in 1958 and it shocked its audiences. Today, it is still viewed as a controversial play, but with the many changes in society over the past 40 years, it is different issues that disturb modern viewers. 'A Taste of Honey' is a play about controversial issues, and was also part of a controversial movement in theatre, known as the 'Angry Young Man'. This movement was headed by John Osborne, whose play 'Look Back in Anger' had an inestimable impact on British theatre. Theatre had recently been a form of middle-class entertainment with few hard-hitting and true to life storylines - this was completely changed with the rise of the 'Angry Young Man' movement. The main characters of these plays shared certain rebellious and critical attitudes toward society. The writer of 'A Taste of Honey', Shelagh Delaney, was also a part of this movement, and her impactful and honest play caused great discussion amongst audiences across the country. The new attitudes
From dependence to independence - To what degree does Jo mature during the play and become less dependent on other people?
From dependence to independence - To what degree does Jo mature during the play and become less dependent on other people? Jo was a naïve young schoolgirl, dependent on her unreliable mother Helen, never knowing her father. She was trapped between school, her mother and grotty little bedsits, never really having an outside life. This kept her young, so she was often childish and had a fear of the dark. Jo was desperate to leave her mother and spread her wings. Her life is a roller coaster and the play shows her life with its ups and downs. From meeting the black sailor, to getting ready to give birth, we see her mature and become independent. In Act 1, Scene 1, we find out about Jo's schooling and talents. When she arrives, she wants to find somewhere to plant her bulbs. As she says, "It's nice to see a few flowers." Helen also finds some drawings that Jo had done and gives her a rare compliment by saying, "I didn't realise I had such a talented daughter." Jo replies by saying, "I'm not just talented, I'm geniused." Jo is also intent of leaving school - and Helen - at Christmas. She seems to think that she is mature enough to do so. She hates the flat and when Helen says, "This is the place," Jo replies, "And I don't like it." She hates life and doesn't realise how good it can be because she is always on the move. She also seems lonely. This is most likely because she is
A Taste of Honey: From dependence to independence.
A Taste of Honey: From dependence to independence 'A Taste of Honey' was written by Shelagh Delaney when she was 18, and published in 1958. Four years later, in 1962, it was turned into a film. It shows life as it really was for many people in and around the slums of Salford, near Manchester, living with the poor housing and lack of opportunity. The characters are genuine; you can really believe in them. Some of the characters were totally different from the usual 'straight-laced' characters that were so common in the kitchen-sink dramas that were around at the time. For instance, a homosexual, a young pregnant unmarried girl, a semi-whore mother and a black sailor all living in the same areas, and some even living in the same houses as each other. This was completely different from the 'safe' plays of the time. There is hope in the play; the characters, especially Jo, are able to overcome their fears and problems and carry on with their lives. The characters in a taste of honey speak like typical working class people in the north of England. There are not many examples of regional dialect, but there are a few, such as when Helen says, 'Eee, there's a terrible draught,' showing that Helen is a resident of Lancashire. The characters drop letters, making them sound more common. There are many examples of this, including Jo saying, 'You packed 'em,' and Helen saying, 'Turn 'em
A taste of honey - From dependence to independence.
From dependence to independence Jo, a trapped schoolgirl seeking sanctuary away from her unreliable mother Helen, yet finding herself dependent upon her. The frequent movement from place to place and no steady source of income meant that Jo had no real social life at school or at home and few luxuries. Jo relies on a carefree black sailor for comfort, however, a facsimile of her own life, he is torn away and she is forced to move on. Helen leaves Jo and marries the untrustworthy Peter. A Gay colleague known as Geoff now comes into her life, and Jo soon realises he is a reliable person, and begins to depend upon him when she is pregnant. Towards the end, Geoff leaves upon the return of Helen, and Jo becomes the independent woman that she so longed for, perhaps a result of her quick taste of honey. In Act 1, Scene 1, we find out about Jo's schooling abilities. When she arrives, she wants to find somewhere to plant her bulbs. As she says, "It's nice to see a few flowers." Helen finds some drawings that Jo had done and compliments her by saying, "I didn't realise I had such a talented daughter." Jo reveals her childish side by replying with "I'm not just talented, I'm geniused." Jo's intentions of leaving school and Helen at Christmas, becomes apparent, as she seems to think that she is mature and independent enough to do so. Another sign her naivety. Her view of the new flat